Whether it is through artificial intelligence, using the cloud or simply picking up the phone to offer proactive advice, the role of an accountant is shifting towards strategic advice with an international outlook, argues Chris Downing, director at professional services firm Inspire

An estimated 2.6m UK consumers have bought cryptoassets at some point, an increase of 1.1m in the past year, according to research by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which has expressed concerns about lack of regulation in this sector

PwC has come under the spotlight over a project to develop a facial recognition tool allowing clients to track finance workers’ absences from their computer screens while working from home remotely, amid concerns over privacy issues

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has stepped in to address a case of mistaken identity which has seen investors put money into a little known Chinese tech firm, Zoom Technologies, in the mistaken belief that it is behind the Zoom, the video conferencing app which is going through the roof as a result of coronavirus working from home rules

German digital bank N26 is pulling out of the UK market citing post-Brexit regulatory issues as the reason for closing all UK accounts

Big Four firm KPMG has partnered with Google Cloud in a bid to improve its regulatory compliance and customer service using artificial intelligence (AI)

European regulators have imposed €114m (£97m) in fines under the GDPR regime for data privacy infringements, with a further €329m in fines threatened by the UK regulator

Croner-i has launched its brand new Navigate Audit service designed to simplify and support audit compliance with an improved PCAS suite with an easily tailored macro-free Excel tool linked to clear, comprehensive guidance

DSG Retail Ltd, a subsidiary of Dixons Carphone, has been hit with a £500,000 fine, the maximum possible over a data breach

Foreign exchange company Travelex has admitted it is being held to ransom by hackers after a cyber-attack meant the business has had to turn off all computer systems and carry out processes manually

Big Four firm EY has expanded its consulting arm with the acquisition for an undisclosed sum of AgilityWorks, a technology consultancy business with offices in the UK, Portugal and India 

Artificial intelligence (AI) is not yet advanced enough to challenge judgmental accounting and auditing decisions made by humans, but it will not be long before the technology can do so. Pete Hirsch, chief technology officer at Blackline, examines the potential of AI

ICAEW has announced a partnership with financial data analytics software company Inflo to give smaller accounting firms access to analytics dashboards and artificial intelligence (AI) tools

MPs are demanding regulators take action to reduce the current level and frequency of IT failures in the financial services sector, which a Treasury select committee report has branded ‘unacceptable’